Told You So
by Danica77
Summary: Rachel is immature and not ready to face the real world. Hiding behind her sarcasm the last thing she wants is an arrogant biker in her life. Set before Season 1.
1. Chapter 1

******So, I must be insane to post another story while I still have two I am working on. I won't be able to update this one as often because the other two are my priorities, but it's fun to write and a nice break. I hope you like it! I don't own anything SOA******

Rachel leaned forward on the counter and rested her head on her hands. She was two seconds of boredom away from falling asleep right there. "Ugh!" She whined to herself. She glanced at the clock for the twelfth time in four minutes. The day was dragging endlessly.

Working here was not what she wanted to do when she "grew up". It was just something in the meantime until she got there, kind of like her own personal purgatory. She was going part time to college in her hometown of Lodi and working at this shitty little convenience store to get her through it. Her parents had both passed away so she was forced to do the best she could with what she had, and at this point it wasn't much, but she wasn't one to complain. Except when she was bored. She hated being bored. And for the most part she could usually keep busy but today she was bored of being bored, bored of thinking of things she could do, she just wanted to take a nap.

She closed her eyes for just a tiny little second, never intending to _really_ nap, when she heard the sounds of motorcycles pulling into her parking lot. Great, bikers. They always thought they were so cool with their little matching vests and gloves, acting like they owned the place. But at least she wasn't bored anymore.

The door dinged as two of them came inside. The first one was a long haired blond with his sunglasses still on, strutting in like he was the hottest thing on the planet. Granted he did look pretty good, but his demeanor was a major turn off. The second one was a shorter heavier man who seemed to be lost behind his mammoth hair and beard.

"Can I help you guys?" She asked them, pretending to actually care if they needed help.

"Yes you can darlin," The blond said coming up to her counter and just standing there, waiting. _Was this guy for real?_ She looked behind him and saw the other man opening each refrigerator door to look for what he needed, _you can't just look through the see through glass?_ She turned her gaze back to the blond and saw that he had removed his sunglasses. His eyes were sparkling at her, trying to charm her without saying a word. She looked at him, her eyebrows raised, wondering when he was going to finish his sentence.

"So, what do you need help with?" She asked, raising her voice up an octave at the end of her sentence, hesitant to make it a question.

"Can I get a pack of smokes?" He pointed up at the brand he wanted with a mischievous grin on his face. This guy had way too much happiness for her liking. She peeked behind him again and watched the older man stand with the case open for what seemed like forever, ugh this might be worse than being bored.

"You looking for something in particular?" She called out to the older man, the boredom creeping up into her voice. _Please stop opening all the cases and letting all the cold air out._

"Yeah, I don't know, I don't know what I'm _feelin_ like."

"So, Rachel," The blond started, staring at her scribbled name written on her nametag, "Ever go for a ride?" Ugh, she couldn't.

"Yeah, but I stopped riding bikes when I was like 9 or so." She answered, hoping he would stop. She was used to being hit on at the convenience store. Even with her green Snack Stop t-shirt they still couldn't resist her. Maybe it was the way she thoughtlessly threw her chestnut hair into a sloppy messy bun, she was sure that must look crazy sexy to any man. Or maybe it was her ray of sunshine attitude that seemed to seep out of every pore of her being.

He was still standing there grinning. _Couldn't he tell that she wasn't buying it?_ "Maybe it's time you started again," You would think he had just won the lottery with the face he was trying to throw at her.

"Is that the best you got?" She asked him seriously.

"No darlin, but I'd be happy to show you the best I got," He threw right back at her. She looked around, hoping to find a pin to burst his ego with.

"Ugh, thanks but as incredibly charming as you are, my boyfriend wouldn't appreciate that." Maybe that lie would stop him. His smile faded slightly as he stared at her, his eyes narrowing, She quickly glanced away so he wouldn't figure out her truth.

"So you're not going to go for a drink with my son?" The older man said walking up to the counter, putting his energy drink down and sliding it towards her. His son?

"I…" She stammered, majorly confused by the fact that they could possibly be related.

The older man took a five out of his wallet and slid it next to his drink, "I just found out I am cancer free and we are going out to celebrate, you should come, I haven't seen my boy look so happy in months."

The blond turned to his father grinning and put his arm around his shoulder. He did seem to be overly chipper, wow she felt like an asshole.

"Oh wow, congratulations," She said to the older man. She was sorry she had been so annoyed by him wasting all that cold air.

"Yeah, congratulations Pop." The blond squeezed his dad's shoulder tight into him. They stared at each other with the happiest looks on their faces, she raised an eyebrow at the spectacle going on before her.

"Well I'm working, so I can't really…."

"What time are you off?" The blond interrupted to ask her.

"10."

"Ok, we will be across the street at that bar over there, come join us at 10." He shot her a big smirk and the men walked out the door, not giving her the chance to say no.

* * *

10:00 came and Rachel decided to make a beeline to her car. They had probably been drinking two hours already so they wouldn't even notice if she…

"Rachel!" She heard someone yell from across the street. _Damn this guy was persistent. _She turned and saw him standing outside smoking.

"Yeah, just grabbing something out of my car." She didn't know anything about these guys, her brother would kill her for sure….her brother. Shit. She forgot to text him what time she was getting off. At 27 he was five years older than her and thought that meant he was her dad or something. He worked for a construction company and spent most of his nights at his girlfriend's house but when he was home he expected her to be too. She pulled out her cell phone and scrolled to find his messages:

_Going to be a little late, grabbing a drink with a friend. _

She left it at that, he would give her hell if he knew she was going to a bar with a couple of bikers that she didn't even know. He always told her to stay away from them, saying they were into bad shit and were more of a gang than a harmless hobby. But she really saw no way of avoiding it and she had to admit they kind of amused her.

_What friend? And where? Your ass better be here before 2._

She ignored him, she would just say she left her phone in the car. She looked up and saw the blond staring at her, waiting for her to come over. _Alright, alright._

She shut her car door and went over to where he was waiting, already done with his cigarette.

"Should I be worried about you killing me or anything? I'd just like to get that out of the way right now."

He laughed at that, "No darlin, that's not what you need to worry about."

What the hell did that mean? "Alright, well, you should know that I don't handle my alcohol like a lady."

"Looking forward to it," He smirked in response. Damn that smirk, it was annoying as hell but really attractive. She knew that he probably picked up women everywhere he went. She should let him in on the secret that it is much more attractive when you act like you_ don't _know how hot you are.

"Maybe you should tell me your name or show me some sort of photo id or something so I can text my friend in case I don't come home tonight." She told him as they were walking inside.

"Jax." He answered, strutting his way to the bar where his father was sitting. She should probably also tell him that the strut was reeking of cockiness, maybe he should rethink that too.

"Rachel!" Danny, the bartender called out to her in greeting. _Great._ She had been hoping he wasn't working tonight, he would tell her brother for sure. Oh well.

"Hey Danny what's going on?" She asked him, forcing herself to be polite. Danny was quite the washwoman, always searching for information and then telling the town all of your business.

"Same old," He answered, sliding her a beer.

"Rachel, glad you could join us," The older man greeted her, "I'm Bobby."

"Nice to formally meet you Bobby." She smiled at him, he seemed pretty harmless. She wondered how he raised Jax to be so over the top.

"You here with these guys?" Danny asked her.

"Yeah Danny, it's harmless."

"Jimmy is going to shit himself."

Jax was looking at her. Ugh it was already time to leave if this is how it was going to be, and she had only gotten through two sips of her beer.

"Wouldn't be the first time," She answered trying to shut him up.

"Who's Jimmy, your boyfriend?" Jax asked, obviously interested in what Danny had to say.

"No, she doesn't have a boyfriend."

Thank. You. Danny.

"Really?" Jax remarked, she never realized the word had so many syllables, hisstupid smirk spreading over his face again.

"I was trying to get you to leave."

"Well darlin, you should know it's not that easy."

"Well you should know that I'm not very polite and I don't follow directions."

"You should know that's really attractive."

"Well you should know that I don't like long hair, blonds, motorcycles, or cockiness."

"I love challenges."

"I don't."

"You should know her brother will kick your ass, there's a reason she looks like that and is still single." Danny piped up, no one asking for his two cents.

"Don't think Jax is too worried about that, can we get a round of shots?" Bobby asked him, making him busy with something.

Jax was still eyeing her, making her uncomfortable. "Yeah I know I look really hot in my Snack Stop shirt, but can you give it a rest, you're making my sexiness tired."

She could see Bobby chuckling over his beer.

"Funny. But if you look this hot not trying at all I can only imagine darlin." He answered her, obviously not afraid of her snarkiness.

"Yeah, you can only imagine."

"Here's your shots," Danny said putting three down in front of them. There was no way this would end well for her, but it might make it a little more fun.

"To being cancer free," Bobby announced grabbing his shot. _Ugh God that poor man._

"That's awesome," She said grabbing hers.

"To all the opportunities being cancer free can bring you." Jax lifted his, smiling big.


	2. Chapter 2

***Thanks for the reviews! I always love reading them :)***

Rachel was laughing, not really sure why but could sense it might be time to slow it down. The more she drank, the less annoying Jax became and the more gorgeous he was looking, that was her first indication she had one too many. She never really paid attention to old wives tales, but maybe it _was_ true what they say about drinking making people more attractive. There he was, leaning against the counter, talking to Bobby about something that had happened with his friend and she could only stare at his arm that was resting on top of the bar. It was tan with a tattoo down his forearm, his muscle was tightening as he got more into his story. Rachel could tell that he was in good shape just from looking at that small part of him, and his hand, it was perfect, his fingers the perfect size, not too skinny and girly looking and the veins that stuck out and crept up from the back of his hand towards his….

"She might be ready to call it a night," Bobby said laughing.

"What?" She looked up, embarrassed, and saw them both staring at her. "Yeah that might be a good idea." She answered. She knew it was better not to get involved with Jax anyway and now an out had finally presented itself.

"Let me give you a ride home." Jax offered.

"No that's ok, I'll need to have my car in the morning."

"Let him Rach, this could be interesting," Danny said eavesdropping as usual.

"No really, it's fine. I had fun though." She said, trying to be nice with telling him no.

"She lives really close, so you could drive her car home and then walk back." Danny said to Jax, looking at him all sincere and helpfully, "And Rach, you don't want Jimmy finding out that you drove home so drunk." She glared back at him. Damn that little shithead. Now she _had_ to say yes.

"Fine."

"Ok I'll be back in a few," Jax said patting his dad on the back, a grin spreading across his face.

"No rush, I still have a few more to go until I'm satisfied." Bobby answered. _No rush._ Something about that made her really nervous. Being alone with Jax. Being drunk enough to actually_ fall_ for his charm.

Jax walked outside and lit up a cigarette. Rachel followed him, hoping the fresh air would give her some clarity. She realized how sweaty her palms were getting as she dug through her purse, rummaging around for the keys she was constantly losing. She peeked up to see a look of amusement on his face. "They're in here somewhere."

"I'm sure."

"It's just….this bag's way too big." Now she was nervous _and_ annoyed.

"You probably don't need all that stuff in there," He said, walking over and peeking over her shoulder. Rachel tried to turn away. "Like the bag of chips, bottle of soda and what is that? A mouse?" The cigarette was hanging out of the side of his mouth as he put his hand on her purse to open it up wider for her. Damn he looked sexy like that. She was never doing shots again.

"It's for my cat."

"Your cats in there too?" He asked smiling.

"Found them," She said relieved, pulling her keys out and unlocking the doors before handing them to him. She went over to the passenger side and jumped in as quick as she could.

She didn't look at him as he finished smoking and got into the driver's seat, lifting the knob and pushing the seat back so he could actually fit in it. She gave him directions and was relieved that the drive was very short. They pulled into her driveway and she noticed that Jimmy wasn't home, he must be at Cassie's. It was good in one way, that he wouldn't be out here confronting Jax like she knew he would. But in another way…

He parked and turned the car off, jumping out. She hesitantly got out of her side.

"Thanks." She said to him as he handed her the keys.

"Any time darlin." Oh he was starting that again?

He walked up to the door with her as she put her key in to unlock it. "Well it was nice meeting you Jax. Even though you're pretty obnoxious and all, it was kind of fun." She spoke to him over her shoulder, going through the doorway and hoping he would leave.

"You think I'm obnoxious?" He said following her inside. Oh shit, what was he doing?

"Yeah, um you know I texted my friend about if she should find my murdered body and all."

"Is that your cat?" He asked walking over to her cat laying on the back of her couch and petting him. She was never going to get rid of him. He might have just moved in without her knowing.

"Yeah, you know if you're choosing our babies names right now you should know that I'm not ready for kids."

"What's his name?"

"Harold."

"Seriously?"

She shifted in her spot uncomfortably. She had tried to get rid of him the nice way but it might be time to search out her pepper spray.

"You want me to leave?" He asked, noticing her uneasiness. He came up close to her, his eyes sparkling. She wasn't sure how they sparkled, there wasn't much light coming from the one lamp she had switched on. But there they were, sparkling away, and she was feeling dizzy.

"I think you should." She tried to shift her gaze away from him.

"So, you want me to?" He leaned his arm against the wall behind her and moved his face closer to hers. Rachel could feel her heart starting to beat fast. This guy was good.

"I, I'd hate to bore you with my crazy cat lady ways."

"You don't bore me at all."

"Also, I'm a pig, my room's a mess…."

"You want to go in your room?" Shit.

She looked at him, she knew he was playing her but he looked really good at the moment. Maybe she should just stop fighting so hard. How bad would it be to mess around with a tan, muscular, beautiful man for a little while? It would mean nothing and he would leave and it would be over.

_You're fucking insane._ She told herself as she leaned forward to kiss him. He pulled back as soon as her lips touched his, "Hey, slow down, what are you doing?"

_Are you fucking serious_? He smiled and walked closer to her, pushing her back against her living room wall. _Ugh, she was about to get so used._ His lips were on hers again but this time they were aggressive, attacking her. It felt so good and Rachel couldn't stop herself from kissing him back, loving the way it was making her feel. She ran her hands up his arms, those arms she had spent so much time admiring, under the sleeves of his shirt, feeling his muscles flexing as he pushed himself closer to the wall. He stopped kissing her lips and found the soft part of her neck; the feeling of his kisses there were making her warm on all her girl parts, parts that were betraying her more and more with every second that ticked by. What was she doing? Ugh….but she couldn't stop. She knew herself too well and knew there was a reason she played hard to get. She always got hurt. And doing this when they just met? Of course he wouldn't respect her. He was kissing up her neck and under her ear . She never knew that part of her body could feel like that. Shit. Before she could stop herself, her hands were behind his neck pulling him closer, playing with that fucking hair she thought she hated so much.

He came back to her lips, smiling as he kissed her again. Things were definitely escalating and he was being so kind and gentle about it, not making it seem like he was just using her like he was. His kiss was strong and perfect and she found herself giving in again, enjoying how great it was. Her hands roamed beneath the bottom of his shirt and up his stomach, she could feel how amazing he looked and it just turned her on more. He picked her up, scooping her legs up and holding onto her thighs as he pressed her harder into the wall, using it to support her weight and get as close as he possibly could. He was kissing her hard now, her face being scratched by his scruff but she didn't care.

And then his phone rang, he ignored it at first but it just kept ringing.

He pulled away, setting her down to take the phone out of his pocket. "Sorry." He said to her. "Yeah?" He answered the phone. "Ok I'll be right there."

_Well that sucks, but I guess it's what you wanted anyways_, she told herself.

"You have to go?" She asked him but it was more of a statement than a question.

"Yeah, I'm sorry."

"It's fine," She answered. He leaned in to give her a soft kiss on her lips before leaving. Not asking for her phone number. Not saying he'd see her again. Just as she expected.

***Let me know! Love to hear from you!***


	3. Chapter 3

*****Thank you thank you thank you for the reviews! I wasn't sure how you would like my OC, but she's fun to write so I'm glad you are interested! Always love hearing from you all!*****

"Rach!" Rachel groaned as she heard Jimmy's voice, hollering as he came in the house.

"What? I'm sleeping here." She answered, annoyed that he woke her. She glanced at her clock and saw that it was almost 11 already. She laid her head back down on the pillow and shielded her eyes with her arm from the sunlight that was brightly streaming through her open blinds.

"Get your ass up!" He barked, barging in her room.

"Get out Jimmy!" She screamed, throwing her pillow at him. It had been so hot the night before that she had slept in only a tank top and panties and the last thing she wanted was her _brother_ seeing her.

"Did you have someone over here last night or something?" He asked not budging as she scrambled to cover herself with the blanket.

"No, it was hot and I was too tired to turn the A/C on…..Wait, did you get a new tattoo?" She noticed the fresh ink on his upper right arm. He already had a sleeve of tattoos on both arms, she was surprised she even saw it.

"Yeah, Cassie wanted me to get it." He stood there grinning like the asshole he was.

"Great….you're really starting to look like a skin head or something you know," His head was shaved and with all his tattoos he was really pretty intimidating, the white tank top he was wearing didn't help much either.

"So who were you drinking with last night?" He asked her. She wondered if it was worth lying about and decided it was a chance she might have to take.

"Just Lori, hey I thought you would be home but you weren't."

"I was but I went out when Cassie called. She needed help with moving some shit."

"Ugh, everything's Cassie." She said flopping back down on her pillowless bed. Her thoughts managed to drift to Jax and her pounding headache came to the forefront, reminding her of the bad choices she made with every thump.

"You need some aspirin?" Jimmy stood there chuckling, relishing in her discomfort.

"That would be awesome."

"Ok, but put some clothes on, I don't need any jerk offs staring in my sister's window, checking out her titties." He called out over his shoulder as he finally left her room.

"You're disgusting."

It had been four long days and Rachel was now officially entering regret mode. She was thankful that she didn't sleep with him, but still, she had opened herself up a little bit and she was not happy with how it was making her feel in it's aftermath. She had managed to go to work and school, but every moment she had been home she couldn't help but think about him. She tried her best to distract herself, but nothing seemed to be doing the job. And now, as she wasted more of her precious time wallowing in her sorrow, she decided that she never wanted to hear the words Jax or Tequila again, both of them making her feel equally sick to her stomach at the slightest thought.

Rachel slumped, camped out on the couch, completely enveloped in feeling sorry for herself, when her brother came home from work, stinking from being outside in the heat working with dirt and nails all day. He walked in and went straight to the fridge, touching everything inside with his disgusting hands.

"You stink, take a shower or something." She informed him from her tiny fortress on the couch.

"What's up with you? You've been hanging out on the couch for three days straight." He turned to ask her, the milk carton in his hands and a white mustache above his lips, evidence of his guilt.

Ugh, she couldn't. "Between working and going to school, yeah I know I'm a loser. Do you mind pouring that in a glass?"

"You know what I mean. It's not like you to be so…well actually you_ are_ usually moody. Hey, why's the cat locked in the bathroom?" He asked her. She looked and saw Harold's paw sticking out from underneath the door, swatting blindly around as he tried to find his way out.

"He's in time out." She informed him turning back to the TV.

"You can't put a cat in time out Rach."

"When he's had five spazz attacks in the past hour you can."

She could see him rubbing his temple out of the corner of her eyes. She could also see him taking another nasty swig out of that carton. She mentally reminded herself that she was now officially not a milk drinker. "Another thing, you really have to let him in your room at night. It's annoying as hell to listen to him meow at your door all night."

"I can't do that."

"Why, you want to torture me?" He came over to her, standing between her and the show she was trying so hard to distract herself with. He stood there staring at her waiting for an answer. She really didn't understand how the intelligence in the family seemed to skip over him entirely. It was like she was constantly explaining everything to him.

"No, he steals my breath when I sleep."

"You're fucking insane."

"Yeah well, I still have my soul and that's how I plan to keep it." She aimed the remote at his body, hoping he would take the hint.

"The only spazz here is you," He was finally moving back into the kitchen. Thank God. "Just to let you know I am having some of the guys over tonight so please give us some privacy in the garage."

"Whatever."

"I'm serious Rach."

"Do you really think I give a shit what you and your boys babble on about?"

"Thank you."

Jimmy and his boys were hanging out in the detached garage whispering and telling secrets like a bunch of hormonal thirteen year old girls while Rachel was trying to look for something, _anything_, to make herself feel better. She considered eavesdropping and making fun of them, but she realized it would only piss her off. Every time she tried to think of something, Jax's face popped up in her head. How did he manage to have such an effect on her? She always tried to never let any man have that much power, and the second she let her guard down for a moment, the crazy mind games were starting to suck the brains out of her head. And honestly it felt like they were being sucked out by a very thin straw, a coffee stirrer even. What an asshole he was to play her like that…._but you knew what he was doing and you went for it anyway, you're the asshole_…she went back and forth, arguing with herself as she desperately searched the freezer for some ice cream.

Ah, chocolate brownie chunk chocolate chip, that should do the trick. She stuck a grown up spoon in it and took her place of misery back on the couch.

"Rach!" Her brother was storming in the house looking for her. She practically choked on a chocolate chunk from her reclined position when he scared her with his booming voice.

"Geez Jimmy stop, you are always yelling." She flicked the drop of ice cream off of her shirt that had landed there with her finger. He was endlessly annoying her with his screaming.

"Why am I just now finding out that you were getting drunk with Jax Teller at the bar the other night?" His face was extremely pissed, but she could only wonder who had told him.

"What?" She asked, tossing the half-gallon aside and scrambling off of the couch to look out the window and see who was in the garage. That stupid douchebag Danny was over. _Why the hell would he be here?!_

"You told me you were out with Lori. Does this have anything to do with you moping around since then?" He accused her, coming up from behind.

"No!" She yelled turning around, he usually towered over her at his enormous 6 foot 3, but now she felt like a tiny circus act in front of him. She tried to stand her ground but realized it was a losing battle.

"You need to stay away from him Rach." He glared at her sternly.

"No problem Jimmy. I just met him that night, haven't spoke to him since."

"Real fucking great, so that asshole fucked you and left you like nothing."

"I didn't have sex with him Jimmy."

"Yeah ok, I'm not an idiot Rach, don't lie to me about this shit because I WILL find out."

"I didn't! Danny is a fucking wash woman, he makes shit up to make it interesting, you know that Jimmy."

***Thank you thank you thank you for the reviews! I was not sure how you would like my OC but she's fun to write so hopefully it keeps it interesting. Thanks again and always love to hear from you!***

"I'm not asking, I'm telling you. He's SOA, I don't want you having anything to do with him." His warning might have scared anyone else and maybe it scared her a little. But SOA, that meant absolutely nothing to her. Jimmy never wanted her with anyone so of course he would use that. But he didn't need to worry because she would never be with him anyway, and he would obviously never be with her either.

"Are you hearing me?" He asked her, his eyes searching for signs of obedience, breaking her from her thoughts.

"I hear you," She answered, grabbing her ice cream on her way to her room, slamming the door shut behind her. Danny would pay for the shit he was stirring up.


	4. Chapter 4

*****Sorry for the insane delay! I hope you are all still hanging in there! Thank you for all the reviews last chapter and taking the time to let me know what you think!*****

"And then," Bobby said, struggling to keep from laughing before he could finish, "The sneaky little smart ass bastard said 'To all the opportunities being cancer free can bring you!" The men all laughed as Bobby beamed with pride, pointing the top of his beer towards Jax and nodding before taking a long pull from his bottle.

Jax was sitting on the stool next to Bobby, grinning into his beer as he listened to the man retell the story for probably the third time since it had happened. This time it was for a much appreciative and fully attentive audience of Tig and Chibs.

"My son, my prodigy," Tig said as he came up behind him, clamping his hands down hard on Jax's shoulders before slowly starting his version of a sensual massage.

"You don't have to go that far," Jax threw a look at him, jerking his back away from Tig's hands.

"Just proud of you baby boy," Tig slapped him on the side of the shoulder and went over to the bar to get a drink.

It _was_ funny, it _was_ smooth how it all worked out. Jax took another drink of his beer before setting it down on the bar and picking at the wet paper of the label. He had tried but he just couldn't get the thought of that girl out of his head. It was most likely due to the fact that Bobby kept bringing it up, endlessly proud of himself for his quick thinking that day, that had to be it. If he would just stop telling that fucking story. But maybe it was something else, maybe it was because she was different than all the girls who hung out around here. Sure, he probably would have ended up having sex with her that night, but she was feisty and practically fought him the whole way, not like the eager lap dogs that were always waiting for him here. And if he did have sex with her she probably wouldn't be invading his thoughts every day since then. No one had been in his head, with the exception of Tara, and it was starting to annoy him. He knew what he had to do, he had to have sex with her…..fuck her and rid himself of the unwanted images that had moved in and occupied his brain.

"She didn't have a chance," Chibs said shaking his head.

"Not one," Bobby agreed smiling at Jax.

"What can I say?" Jax joked.

Tig came back over with his beer and leaned against the bar next to Jax. "So please tell me, after all the dramatics….did you manage to get the little man wet?" He looked at him earnestly and Bobby huffed out.

"He would have been neck deep, swimming laps in the pool, but duty called." Jax answered him with a smirk.

"Darby," Bobby added.

"Ah, right. Too bad." Tig winked and tried to rub his shoulder again.

* * *

It was over 90 degrees and Rachel was getting ready for work for the day. She had passed the regret phase of her reckless abandon and was now entering the angry phase, which for her it basically meant she was acting normal. She threw some black shorts on, buttoning them up and stared at the ugly t-shirt laying across her bed. An evil smirk spread upon her lips as she decided it was time to mutilate the hideous thing and use it to her advantage. Grabbing some scissors, she cut the crew neck into a v, chopped the sleeves off leaving huge holes and cocked her head to the side, deciding it was missing something. She tied a scrap piece onto the back to form it into a racer back tank. The store's logo was still visible and Harvey, her boss, would just have to get over himself if he didn't like it. Pleased with her talent she smiled, fastened her long side bangs back with a clip, slipped on her converse and headed out the door.

Work proved to be just as torturous as her house, if not worse. She had the air conditioner cranked, set on 68 degrees and it was working double time, sweating down into a messy pool of water on the floor by the magazine rack. The heat was fighting it like a champ though and with the constant stream of customers going in and out the double doors it was never really able to cool off. Harvey was working the register so she decided to fill the cooler with the ice cream bars, tempted to just sit in there the remainder of her shift.

"Rachel, I am going in the back to go work on the books since it finally slowed down, can you watch the register for awhile?" Harvey peered down at her over the top of his glasses. His long, salt and pepper mustache twitched while he waited for her response.

She fought the smile that threatened to show, knowing he wouldn't be amused at her finding his furry lip laugh worthy. "Sure Harv," she answered with as respectful a look as she could produce on such short notice. She watched him as he waddled towards the back door before turning back to the project she had immersed herself in.

The cooler was almost fully stocked but she wanted to put the rest of them in before they melted into a sticky puddle right there on the old tile floor. She bent down, her entire upper half of her body inside the case when she heard the bells chime, alerting her of a customer. "Be right with you." She called out. She straightened up from the uncomfortable position and took a step back to brush her hands off on her shirt, landing right on top of someone.

"Oh sorry," She said turning around, apologetically, but her sincere expression changed to annoyance when she saw that it was Jax. He stood there with that fucking smart ass smirk glued across his face.

"What are you doing here?" She practically spat at him. Normally she wouldn't be so rude, but the roller coaster she had been riding up and down inside her head the past two weeks had left her lacking in the polite department.

"I came to see you." He answered, his smirk growing wider if that was at all possible. And for one really teeny tiny short sliver of a moment it might have even looked sexy.

Rachel blinked a few times. She was really upset at him for leaving that night and not looking back, but now here he was, could she still be pissed? She wasn't sure, but she still _felt_ pissed.

"You think you could have waited any longer?"

"Yeah, well, shit came up." She stared at him, pissed, but happy he came back, she'd be damned if she would let _him_ know that though. If he had really used her would he be here right now? Well, maybe, if he still wanted sex. That's probably what he wanted. He probably thought she was Slutty McSluttins by her quick to the bed behavior that night. She crossed her arms under her chest and instantly regretted it when she saw his eyes go straight to her breasts. And, to her self contained horror, most likely her extremely hard nipples that were probably staring directly at him right now after spending the afternoon in an ice cube. He realized he was staring and looked up, Rachel met his angelic expression with her eyebrow raised.

"You're not happy to see me?" He asked innocently.

"Let's just say I've sobered up since I saw you last." She bent down and picked up the empty cardboard boxes and headed towards the front register. Jax followed closely behind her as she walked.

"What are you doing later?" She could practically feel him breathing down onto the top of her hair. He definitely thought she was a floozy or something, maybe, to her credit, something more classy like a harlot. She silently cursed herself for giving it up so easily before.

"Nothing that involves alcohol."

Jax stood there just looking at her. He looked so good, so tall with muscular, tan, protective arms sticking out of his white t-shirt. She scolded herself as she pulled what was left of her willpower together to stand up to him. He wasn't offering anything so she finally spoke.

"Looks like you're thinking really hard," She pointed out, offering him a sympathetic eye nod.

"I'm trying to think of what we can do that doesn't involve alcohol."

"Or sex." She said pointedly.

He smirked at her. "Ok then, I got nothing."

"That's what I thought," She answered, turning back around.

"Hey, wait, I'm only kidding," He put his hand gently on her arm and she felt a blush threaten her cheeks at the touch. Quickly, she looked back down to the boxes so he wouldn't see her weakness. "What time do you get off?"

"Seven." She answered. What the hell was wrong with her? She knew better than this. Why didn't she lie?

"Ok, I'll be here at seven then," He smirked again, a smirk that would haunt her for eternity she figured, before turning and walking out the door.

"Now what did I do?" She asked herself as she watched him strut off towards his bike. She stared as he put his helmet on, strapping it underneath his chin and slid his sunglasses over those twinkling little orbs of heaven. She focused her gaze on his leg as he threw it over the side of the motorcycle before shifting himself to get comfortable. It was only when he turned and nodded at her, smirking AGAIN that she realized she had been staring, been caught, and from the feeling she was getting from deep inside, she was in big trouble.

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	5. Chapter 5

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Rachel smiled to herself. It was quarter to seven and Jax was already waiting for her outside. He was off his bike, smoking and kicking at the loose pebbles on the pavement while he paced the parking lot. He had thankfully decided not to wear his scary skull vest and had opted for a nice button down plaid shirt and jeans, if she didn't know any better she would say he might have even tried for her. She sighed inwardly, knowing that she was only going to torment herself with mental games all over again once this night was over.

Before she could even greet him she was met with a smirk. He even cocked his head back and to the side as he did it, almost like he was proud at how smooth he was. That would definitely get old really quick. _Wouldn't it? _She thought it over as she walked to where he was leaning against his bike.

"You're gonna need this," He told her as he held his helmet out to her. It figures he would make her ride on his bike, he probably thought he was winning or something. But she humored him and took the helmet, plopping it down on her head with a smart ass smirk of her own. "It looks good on you," He said grinning as he fastened the strap tightly under her chin. She quickly turned her attention downward so he wouldn't be able to see the burn in her cheeks.

Jax turned and got on his bike, starting it up while waiting for Rachel to get on behind him. She wasn't really sure how to do it, at least without making herself look like a ridiculous fool. It was like the first time she tried to wear high heels, she wanted to look all sexy and alluring but ended up miserably failing, looking more like a blind man stumbling around, trying to avoid many many hot flaming coals. Many. That lasted all of fifteen minutes.

"Come on chicken, there's nothing to worry about, I'm an excellent driver." He reached his hand out for her to grab and use it to hoist herself up behind him. She was trying really hard to behave and managed to stay quiet through the whole ordeal. However, she couldn't stop herself from mentally logging the great responses she had for his excellent driver comment.

"Hold on tight, I know it's been a long time," He yelled over the engine which had suddenly gotten really loud. What the hell was she supposed to hold on to? He turned his head slightly to the side to watch her and she started to panic, shit, this is too much pressure, hot coals, many, many. "Shit Rachel, I was joking when I said it's been a long time...put your arms around my waist." Oh yeah, how did she not know that? She put her arms around his waist and started to panic a little more, feeling his warm toned body right underneath her fingertips. Ugh, get it together girl, you have to stay strong. "You ok?" He asked her with an inquisitive look.

"Yes," She finally answered, realizing in that moment that she had been quiet for a long time by her standards. He probably thought he was making her nervous. Damn he was so cocky.

He shoved the kickstand up with the heel of his shoe and slowly took off towards the highway. She did notice that he tried to drive slowly and safely for about the first block or so before he took off like a shit head down the road after that. She found herself gripping for her life so she wouldn't die. Laughing to herself, she tried to imagine her brother's face when he saw her road killesque body in it's coffin, knowing she had been with Jax right before her departure.

It was kind of nice, in a suicidal way, to ride on a motorcycle. The temperature had dropped slightly but the wind was enough to make the air feel almost perfect. Rachel looked around as they rode, trying to figure out where they were going exactly. This was his chance to kidnap and kill her, and there were definitely enough creepy places to dump dead bodies between Lodi and Charming, places where people would never look, besides, she had never mentioned to anyone what her plans were for the night. She sighed and resigned. There were much worse ways to go she supposed.

After driving for about 20 minutes Rachel knew they were near Charming. Was he bringing her back to his house? Did he think she was going to have sex with him? Probably. She sure gave him that idea before. He probably had some kind of cat fetish or something, since he was even interested in her anyway. Jax slowed and pulled into the parking lot of a lone standing building. It had a flashing sign, one of those kinds where each letter lights up on it's own, M-u-g-s a-n-d J-u-g-s. Classy.

He parked the bike and got off, luckily being gentleman enough to help her off to. "I thought I said no alcohol." She couldn't wait to say that, pretty annoyed that he had completely ignored her.

"Don't worry, I plan on buying you water all night," He answered with a grin creeping across his face again. He was too cute to be annoyed at so she looked away before she could fall prey to his little plots.

"So is this where you take all the girls?"

"All what girls?" He answered, smiling bigger.

"Yeah ok. It looks like a classy place." She smirked back at him.

"Best water in town." He got behind her and placed his hand on her lower back, pushing her gently inside the heavy wooden door as he opened it for her. "We're meeting my friend and his wife here, I thought it would make you feel less awkward on our second date," He whispered in her ear, leaning over her shoulder. She blushed again, her cheeks betraying her, and silently counted her blessings that it was pretty dark inside.

"There he is, hey Ope," Jax walked up to the man and did a little bro hug of some sorts. The guy was tall, even taller than Jax, and he had a long cool ZZ Top-ish beard, the kind where you find treasures hidden in it days after you lost them. "Rachel this is Opie."

"Hi," She greeted him shyly. Why was she being shy?

"Nice to meet you Rachel," Opie smiled at her. His smile was warm, despite the way he looked at first glance.

"And this is his old lady, Donna," Jax gestured to a short brown haired innocent looking woman. They were definitely a unique couple.

"Nice to meet you," She greeted Donna as she said hello.

"So what's up Ope?" Jax asked him as he leaned on the bar, trying to get the bartender's attention. It wasn't lost on Rachel how he tried his charms on her as well.

"Hang on, I've got more pressing matters to attend to. I've never been on a double date before and I'd like to make the most of it," Rachel liked this guy already. "So Rach, how'd you end up with this guy?"

Jax turned back around and watched her with an eyebrow raised.

"Truthfully, I have no idea, it all happened so quick, as you can tell by my shirt."

"I kidnapped her." Jax added grinning proudly.

"I see that."

"And you brought her here? How romantic," Donna spoke up.

"Hey, we've had many a romantic night at this fine establishment," Opie reminded her and Donna just smiled at Rachel. "Going back to my questions, what exactly do you find attractive about this man?"

"Um," She started, trying to think really hard to find the right words. She could see him looking at her from the corner of his eye. He was partially busy getting himself a beer so it should be pretty safe. "Well once you get through all the obnoxious and cocky qualities, he _is_ pretty perseverant...and even a little chivalrous I think."

"That I am," He smiled handing her a water. She looked down and noticed a cherry in it. "Thanks." She smiled back.

Opie and Jax started talking, so Rachel talked with Donna. It was basic chit chat, she has kids, her kids do this, she doesn't go out much, stuff like that. She did find out that Jax doesn't generally bring girls out on dates, which was something that Rachel didn't expect. Donna seemed nice enough. Every once in a while she would see him looking at her and she snuck a few glances back when she thought they would go unnoticed.

"It looks like someone's ready for number two," Rachel flinched when Jax leaned into her ear from behind her, his hand resting lightly on her hip. He laughed as he grabbed her empty glass and slipped another one into her hand.

"They're too much those two," Donna spoke louder so Rachel could hear her over the music that was playing. "Sometimes I think Opie should have married Jax."

"No, he doesn't have the right equipment between his legs." Opie interrupted. "Speaking of...you ready to get going?"

"Yeah, sure," Rachel could see the woman was tired, she must go to bed pretty early with kids and all. "I hope we can hang out again soon Rachel."

"Me too," Rachel answered her and turn to tell her goodbyes to Opie.

"Ok man, see you tomorrow," Opie and Jax did their little hug thing again and they left.

"You ready to get out of here too?" Jax asked her, she swore there was a playful glint in his eyes and she started to feel nervous...nervous and sober...very sober.

"Yeah, I _am_ kind of tired anyway," She answered, hoping to play it cool and not make him think he was getting any.

"Well you're going to have to stay up a little longer darlin', I can't have you falling off the back of my bike," He answered her with a smile.

"I think I can handle it."

****  
Jax strapped the helmet back onto Rachel's little head. What the fuck was wrong with him? Why was he being so _thoughtful?_ Normally he would just toss the girl his helmet and let them put it on. Normally he would just mess with a girl at the clubhouse. He helped her onto the bike and felt her tiny hands slip around his stomach. He could feel her body as she scooted up close against him and was pretty sure he could feel the warmth of her...

"Thanks for the amazing date," She spoke right in his ear with a whisper at the end. He might have imagined that part but it was pretty hot.

"Anytime darlin'" He responded, he knew how much it bothered her when he called her darlin' so he was determined to do it as much as possible. He was starting to figure this girl out and he was confident he knew how to handle her. He could feel the inside of her thighs tense up beside him and he smirked, knowing it had worked.

When he pulled into the parking lot of her job he tried to think of what his best move would be. He was pretty sure he could get her to have sex with him, but he was suddenly wondering if it was the right thing. Well it was the right thing, but... The convenience store was closed and the parking lot pretty dark, so he pulled up next to her car before he stopped and helped her off. She went over to her car and turned around, ready to say something before he cut her off.

"So, we should just have sex."

"You know, my brother told me I had to stay away from you." Fiesty. She looked so hot standing there in that barely there shirt. He didn't think she even realized how much of her he could imagine underneath.

"What's your brother's name again?" He asked, partially interested in how the guy knew who he was.

"Jimmy."

He decided he waited long enough and he grabbed her chin in his hand, tilting it up towards him as he leaned forward, trying to gage if she was into it or not. He could see her eyes get glassy and start to close so he pushed his body against hers, pinning her against the car. He had a few beers and probably shouldn't have kissed her like that, but her soft full lips just wanted him on them. He put his other hand on her hip and slowly slid it up her side, just enough to feel her smooth skin under his fingers. She groaned a little into his mouth and he pushed against her harder, leaning his forehead into hers and gripping her neck to control himself. He had to stop...if he didn't he would have sex with her and then the chase would be over. Wasn't that what he wanted?

Then he felt her hands go around his neck, one of them traveling into his hair before she pulled him closer into that fucking amazing pouty mouth. Her kiss was so soft and warm, different than the fuck me now kisses he was used to. He groaned and pulled himself away, instantly hating himself for doing so.

"You should get home and get some sleep," He said, trying to be chivalrous like she thought he was. He looked into her eyes and could see that she wanted him as much as he wanted her, but she remained quiet. "We should do this again soon."

"We should." That's all she said, so he nodded at her and turned to go back to his bike. He could hear her opening her car door as he got on his bike. He snuck one more look after he put his helmet on, giving her that smirk that he knew she loved so much.

******Presents?******


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